# Trump administration fires prosecutor in dropped case against politically linked Indian billionaire
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Publisher: NBC News · published 2026-09-09 · read 2026-09-11

Original: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/trump-administration-fires-prosecutor-dropped-case-politically-linked-rcna596848

*A source is testimony, not proof. The document itself is never republished here.*

## Who is named (12)

- [spokesperson](https://truthscore.com/entity/0cc13ba0)
- [Adani attorney](https://truthscore.com/entity/19e35a2f)
- [slide deck](https://truthscore.com/entity/36e7b4d6)
- [Justice Department](https://truthscore.com/entity/3dd2b1e3)
- [Trent McCotter](https://truthscore.com/entity/521446d6)
- [May email](https://truthscore.com/entity/531284aa)
- [Gautam Adani](https://truthscore.com/entity/646d7ab5)
- [federal prosecutor](https://truthscore.com/entity/b19fa658)
- [Joseph Nocella](https://truthscore.com/entity/bd45929f)
- [Trump Administration](https://truthscore.com/entity/cd09fe68)
- [Nicholas Garaufis](https://truthscore.com/entity/e68042cd)
- [proposal to invest $10 billion](https://truthscore.com/entity/e82ad9b4)

## What it added

- [The federal prosecutor was fired by the Trump administration.](https://truthscore.com/claim/32904616)
  > A federal prosecutor who had been assigned to the now-defunct case against a politically linked Indian billionaire has been fired by the Trump administration, two people familiar with the firing tell NBC News.
- [The prosecutor was one of two who asked to withdraw from the Gautam Adani case two days after Trent McCotter moved in May to dismiss the case.](https://truthscore.com/claim/654963da)
  > The prosecutor, who had been with the Justice Department’s Fraud Section in Washington, was one of two who previously asked to withdraw from the Gautam Adani case two days after Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter moved in May to dismiss the case against Adani.
- [Gautam Adani was charged in November 2024 in connection with an alleged scheme to defraud U.S. investors and pay off Indian government officials to win a bid…](https://truthscore.com/claim/14c0b63a)
  > Adani was charged in November 2024 in connection with an alleged scheme to defraud U.S. investors and pay off Indian government officials to win a bid to develop the country’s largest solar power plant.
- [Gautam Adani called the accusations baseless.](https://truthscore.com/claim/c22947a6)
  > He called the accusations baseless.
- [Gautam Adani pledged to invest billions of dollars in the United States.](https://truthscore.com/claim/2771a2e3)
  > Adani pledged to invest billions of dollars in the U.S.,
- [Democratic lawmakers raised questions of a quid pro quo with the Trump administration to avoid prosecution.](https://truthscore.com/claim/af69d355)
  > and Democratic lawmakers raised questions of a quid pro quo with the Trump administration to avoid prosecution.
- [Judge Nicholas Garaufis ordered Gautam Adani to explain whether any deal was made in connection with the government’s reversal.](https://truthscore.com/claim/490fa782)
  > The federal judge hearing the case ordered Adani to explain whether any deal was made in connection with the government’s significant reversal.
- [Gautam Adani denied any deal, and the Justice Department also denied it.](https://truthscore.com/claim/f1552166)
  > He denied it, and so did the Justice Department.
- [Judge Nicholas Garaufis eventually agreed to toss the case against Gautam Adani, though he blasted the Trump administration’s “highly unusual” conduct.](https://truthscore.com/claim/5837e6a9)
  > U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis of the Eastern District of New York eventually agreed to toss the case against Adani, though he blasted the Trump administration’s “highly unusual” conduct.
- [The prosecutor’s firing occurred a month later.](https://truthscore.com/claim/684c55d1)
  > The prosecutor’s firing came a month later, the people said.
- [The Trump administration has fired numerous federal employees without explanation, beyond citing Trump’s executive powers in letters.](https://truthscore.com/claim/cc4f9429)
  > The Trump administration has fired numerous federal employees without explanation, beyond citing Trump’s executive powers in letters, which Justice Department alumni have come to refer to as “Article II letters,” referring to a clause of the U.S. Constitution.
- [A spokesperson for the Eastern District of New York declined to comment.](https://truthscore.com/claim/bfaccd21)
  > A spokesperson for the Eastern District of New York declined to comment.
- [The prosecutor did not immediately respond to a request for comment.](https://truthscore.com/claim/c35ed484)
  > The prosecutor did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
- [Judge Garaufis let stand some counts against Adani’s co-defendants, saying the Trump administration had not provided sufficient factual information to support…](https://truthscore.com/claim/02726946)
  > Last week, Garaufis let stand some counts against some of Adani’s co-defendants, saying the Trump administration had “not provided sufficient factual information to support the stated reasons” for dismissing the charges.
- [Gautam Adani said in a sworn statement filed in July that he was not aware of any agreement involving any person or entity exchanging anything for the…](https://truthscore.com/claim/51c99c4e)
  > Adani had pledged to invest billions of dollars in the United States but said in a sworn statement filed in July that he was “not aware of any agreement involving any person or entity exchanging anything for the dismissal of the indictment.”
- [An email from May referenced a slide deck presentation from Adani’s defense team.](https://truthscore.com/claim/48c5ac81)
  > An email from May from U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella referenced a slide deck presentation from Adani’s defense team that included a proposal to invest $10 billion in the United States, and Nocella wrote that the proposal was “categorically rejected” by the office.
- [U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella wrote that the proposal to invest $10 billion was categorically rejected by the Justice Department office.](https://truthscore.com/claim/0a6b1eb6)
  > An email from May from U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella referenced a slide deck presentation from Adani’s defense team that included a proposal to invest $10 billion in the United States, and Nocella wrote that the proposal was “categorically rejected” by the office.
- [The Justice Department defended the decision to forgo its case against Gautam Adani, with Trent McCotter saying the case was indefensible.](https://truthscore.com/claim/5883e945)
  > The Justice Department has defended the decision to forgo its case against Adani, with McCotter saying the case was “indefensible” and that he “would have sought dismissal of the securities charges regardless of any mentions of investments, regardless of whether the civil case (or any other matter) was settled or otherwise resolved.”
- [An attorney for Gautam Adani could not be reached for comment about the prosecutor’s firing.](https://truthscore.com/claim/44d615df)
  > An attorney for Adani couldn’t be reached for comment about the prosecutor’s firing.

## Questions it bears on

- [What influenced the dismissal of the Gautam Adani case?](https://truthscore.com/question/713099c7)

## What it cost

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